Les Juifs de Philippopolis (Plovdiv)

Plovdiv (Philippopolis), in Bulgaria, was home to one of the most important Jewish communities in the country, whose presence dates back to antiquity and was reinforced by the arrival of Sephardim following the Iberian expulsion of 1492. Judeo-Spanish in language, its members were merchants and craftsmen, organized around their synagogues and institutions. During the Second World War, the deportation of Jews from Bulgaria's pre-war borders was prevented thanks to protests from public opinion, parliamentarians, and the Church, so that the community survived. After 1948, the great majority emigrated to Israel.

Sources & resources

• Encyclopaedia Judaica — 2e éd., Keter/Macmillan
• Jewish Virtual Library ↗